Stewards of Public Lands and Cottonwood Youth Advisory Commission Clean Forest

Stewards of Public Lands and the Cottonwood Youth Advisory Commission joined forces to clean up the unofficial shooting range in the Prescott National Forest near Cottonwood. Two trailer loads were hauled to the Cottonwood Transfer Station using Yavapai County Supervisor Chip Davis's voucher grant program. Commissioners participating, from left, were Jordan Westover, Shaylor Dowling, Lacy O'Connell, Mackenzie Mabery, Josh Nance, Brooke Lindsey, Emma Schraner, Parker Kleck, Charles Novak and Robert Valentine. Mayor Diane Joens, co-chair of the Stewards, joined the group. Also present were Stewards Jim Sweitzer, Dave and Judy Miller, and Jess Tyler. The Cottonwood Youth Advisory Commission provides a united voice for youth and is a driven, motivated group, whose motto is Dream Big. They want to make sure their  generation has the opportunity to enjoy wide-open spaces.

Stewards of Public Lands and the Cottonwood Youth Advisory Commission joined forces on Saturday to clean up the shooting range in the Prescott National Forest west of Cottonwood. Stewards clean up illegal dumping on public lands to keep them enjoyable and accessible for the public. The Stewards maintain and monitor areas to keep them clean and support public education to reduce further dumping and littering. Stewards encourage and assist law enforcement to deter littering and dumping on public lands.

By cleaning up the lands, the landscape is restored to its former beauty and encourages enjoyable and safe recreational opportunities. Residents are more likely to enjoy clean forest lands for hiking, running, bird watching, bicycling, hunting and sightseeing. During the cleanup, Commissioner Emma Schraner observed, “We are making a small dent that has a huge impact.”

Signing in and getting ready for the safety talk given by Dave Miller.

There are a lot of bullet shells to pick up.

The Stewards and commissioners gathered up two trailer loads of trash and bullet shells from the shooting area. Dave and Judy Miller of Cornville provided the trailer. Jim Sweitzer of Camp Verde and Stewards co-chairs Jess Tyler and Diane Joens of Cottonwood also assisted.

Dave Miller hauled two trailer loads to the Cottonwood Transfer Station where Stewards can dump

 for free through a grant from Yavapai County Supervisor Chip Davis.

According to the National Parks Web site, aluminum cans and tabs tossed on forest lands can last 80 to 100 years; even oranges and banana peels can last up to two years. Cigarette butts can last one to five years, and plastic six-pack holders last 100 years. Plastic bags will be there for 10 to 20 years; plastic bottles indefinitely. It’s estimated that a carelessly tossed glass container will be there for a million years if nobody bothers to pick it up and dispose of it correctly.

Mayor Joens says, “The Cottonwood Youth Advisory Commission provides a united voice for youth and is a driven, motivated group. We really appreciated their help at our cleanup.” The Youth Commissioners encourage everyone to keep forest lands clean.

Commissioner Brooke Lindsey stated “I can’t believe people just leave trash out here. I want to make sure our generation has the opportunity to enjoy wide-open space.”

On the shooting range, Stewards and Forest Service officials request users to, “Pack it in, pack it out.” Catherine Sampson, Assistant Operations Manager for the Coconino National Forest, advises shooters to place a blanket on the ground, stand in the middle of it while shooting, and all shells will fall on the blanket and can be gathered at once. She also advises that shooters should bring their own wood or cardboard targets and take them home with them. Sampson says, “Do not bring household trash to target practice such as bottles, cans, televisions or old furniture.”

Other rules, Sampson says, include making sure to shoot toward a hill. She says shooters need to know where their bullets go. She also says there is to be no shooting within 150 yards of a residence, building, campsite, developed recreation site or occupied area. Shooting is not allowed across or on a Forest development road or an adjacent body or water, or in any manner or place where any person or property is exposed to injury or damage as a result of such discharge, or into or within any cave.

Sampson says shooting in the National Forest is otherwise permitted, but littering is not permitted. Shooters are responsible for their targets and shells. She also admonishes, “Do not shoot glass, it is impossible to remove.”

Joens feels that the tenacity and work of the Stewards is paying off. “When we first cleaned this area eight years ago, community volunteers, the City of Cottonwood, Town of Clarkdale, and Forest Service hauled out three large dumpsters of illegally dumped trash, shooting targets, and bullet shells. Today, the lands surrounding our communities are much cleaner. We want to thank the public for their help.”

“In the old days,” Joens remembers, “We had huge monthly forest cleanups with dozens of volunteers. We pulled a 40 yard dumpster of illegally dumped trash out of the forest nearly every month for five years. Now, thanks to the public’s assistance in keeping the lands clean, we are able to keep up with small group cleanups. Yavapai County Supervisor Chip Davis has provided a voucher grant program so that volunteers can go out and cleanup the forest when they see a small dump site. Then, they can use Supervisor Davis’s voucher program to dump with no charge to them personally.”

The Stewards’ goal is to clean up illegal dumping on public lands

 to keep them enjoyable and accessible for the public.

Anyone wishing to learn more information about the Stewards of Public Lands or the Cottonwood Youth Advisory Commission can access their Web sites at www.verdestewards.org or http://www.cottonwoodaz.gov/bcyouth.php.